Cops, courts eyeballing legality of red-light cameras

SANTA ANA – A recent court decision might have dealt a serious blow against red-light camera citations in the county, but law enforcement agencies say don't rule out the cameras yet.

On an appeal of a 2008 red-light ticket, an appellate panel of Orange County Superior Court judges recently ruled that photos and video submitted by police were inadmissible as evidence. Instead, the appeal panel agreed with the defense that the photo and video were hearsay because no officer actually saw the driver run the red light, and the company that maintains the cameras did not testify in the case.

The decision not only repealed the nearly $500 citation, but has sent local agencies scrambling to review what this means to red-light citations that will be fought in court.

Defense attorneys said that since the decision, several citations have been dismissed in court, and at least one local police department decided to dismiss several tickets in court while it reviewed the effects of the decision.

Because the decision was published by the panel, the case may be cited in future traffic court cases and used as a defense, officials and attorneys said – but how judges interpret the decision remains to be seen, and could differ from one case to another.

"It's going to change the landscape a good bit," said Allen Baylis, a traffic attorney who represented Tarek Khaled in the 2008 red-light ticket case. "Those (cities) that have them are going to have to consider whether they want to keep them."

Khaled was issued a ticket for allegedly running a red light on Aug. 2, 2008, a violation that was captured by a red-light camera in Santa Ana.

Baylis tried to get the photo and video dismissed as hearsay; he argued that no one saw Khaled run the red light and that no foundation was laid as to the legitimacy of the pictures.

Without pictures, no citation could be issued.

Officer Alan Berg of the Santa Ana Police Department, who had received training on the cameras, testified in court. But the judges on appeal ruled that, "The person who entered that relevant information into the camera-computer system did not testify. ... No one with personal knowledge testified about how often the system is maintained."

The case was dismissed.

Cities with red-light cameras – such as Santa Ana, Laguna Woods, Garden Grove and San Juan Capistrano – are still issuing citations.

"What it seems to be, at first blush, is a powerful argument," said Lt. Chuck Wilmot of the Orange County Sheriff's Department and chief of police services for Laguna Woods. "We are reviewing it, and it's a little too soon to tell how that's going to affect us."

Sheriff officials, who also patrol San Juan Capistrano, have asked county attorneys to review the decision.

"The discussion is still working its way through the courts," said Lt. Ben Stauffer of the Garden Grove Police Department, who heads the traffic division.

One option, Stauffer said, is to have officers who testify in red-light court cases trained extensively with first-hand knowledge on the cameras, including how it is maintained and programmed.

"It's still an evolving area," he said. "I'm not saying we have an answer. If we're in front of a different judge, we may get a different answer."

While reviewing the Khaled decision, Garden Grove Police decided to dismiss all red-light traffic tickets that were being argued in court during the first week of May, Stauffer said.

Another option would be for employees of the companies that install and maintain the red-light systems to testify in the cases – but that option could prove costly for the cities.

Santa Ana may take that route later this month, when its City Council is scheduled to vote to extend its red-light camera contract.The reworked contract with Redflex Traffic Systems would require the company to provide “expert court testimony” at no extra cost to the city to prosecute red-light violations.

Santa Ana's system has 20 red-light installations, making it the largest network in Orange County; its revised contract with Redflex clears the way for as many as 20 more. The system generated an average of around 1,500 tickets every month last year. The city budget for the coming fiscal year anticipates $1.25 million from red-light camera tickets.

City Attorney Joseph Fletcher said the city is still issuing citations as it did before the Khaled ruling. The city is also looking at filing a motion to have the decision unpublished, which would limit its impact on other cases.

"We don't think it has a broad based effect," Fletcher said.

However, in February, the city filed a brief against Khaled's case, arguing that the pictures and photos should be allowed as evidence, and pointing out to the panel that the decision could affect the validity of red-light cameras in Santa Ana and throughout Orange County.

"The city has a unique interest in this matter because the appeal presents a direct challenge to the legality of the city's automated red light photo enforcement camera systems and procedures," the city's filing read. "As such, any decision by the court will directly affect they city and its camera system. In fact, the underlying issue in this case is not only of great concern to the city, but also potentially affects other cities operating such systems."

In Garden Grove, officers are looking at upcoming court decisions to see how to address the new changes, Stauffer said.

"Judges don't necessarily tell you what to do to push you the other way," he said. "It's still an evolving area."

Garden Grove and sheriff officials said they also are still issuing citations in the meantime.